Well water results are in...

[FredWurlitzer]

You might see discussions of a "contact tank". That gives the chlorine longer to act on its targets. Some are better than others. With your contact tank, you are injecting, and removing the chlorine a short time/distance later.

So would you suggest adding an additional 60 or 80 gallon contact tank to further oxidize the iron? (A 120 gallon fiberglass is too tall for my basement)

Thank you everyone for the advice and information thus far.

 

[Reach4]

That is exactly what I’m doing.. trying to dilute my solution tank with RO water until I get 1-2ppm AFTER the contact tank but BEFORE the carbon filter. I’ve attached a picture of the solution tank as well as the pump. Not sure on the “percent stroke” setting of the pump either..

https://assets.omega.com/manuals/M1757.pdf may not be the same as your pump, but it seems similar. It talks about adjusting.

A contact tank would make the treatment more effective. I think 80 gallon with high baffle-factor may be more than you need, but in your system overkill is good IMO.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Gsmith22]

your degasser tank may also be functioning as a radon removal system. I didn't see any radon results in your testing but based on your profile, you are in New York State? Radon along the east coast can be a real problem (crazy bad in NH). The best way to remove radon from water is via spraying water into the air within a tank and letting the radon off gas to the exterior. Second best (for lower levels) is carbon filter. I didn't follow all of the plumbing in the pictures but that might be a secondary function of your degasser tank with venting to the atmosphere. I don't doubt everyone (and you) have deduced its primary function. You may want to have radon tested. I was shocked at how much dissolved radon was in my well water in NJ.

 

[FredWurlitzer]

https://assets.omega.com/manuals/M1757.pdf may not be the same as your pump, but it seems similar. It talks about adjusting.

A contact tank would make the treatment more effective. I think 80 gallon with high baffle-factor may be more than you need, but in your system overkill is good IMO.

If it helps, the single fiberglass 60 gallon replaced a non-baffled 120 gallon galvanized steel tank. Is there a way to plumb 2 smaller contact tanks together?

 

[FredWurlitzer]

Where is chlorine being drawn from before it is injected?

Perhaps 2 quarts of chlorine is to be added to the container that the chlorine is drawn from before injection, with the remaining container space to be filled with water. By occasionally adding RO water, it sounds as if you are diluting the chlorine but continuing to believe you shouldn't need to do so.

Describe the container the chlorine is drawn from as well as the chlorine strength and the chlorine injection method and settings.

Does that contact tank have a drain port at the bottom? If not, describe how the sediment is removed.

I’m diluting the solution in the chlorine tank with RO water because my residual ppm of chlorine is much much higher than 1-2ppm immediately after the contact tank. My chlorine test kit turns immediately yellow then almost orange because it’s so concentrated with chlorine. I don’t want to expose the carbon filter to more chlorine than is necessary.

 

[FredWurlitzer]

Is anyone familiar with Culligan water softener settings? I’ll provide a picture of it. The resin tank is about 44” tall and 9” in diameter. I have no idea what the grain capacity is on this or if it’s sufficient. The settings are as follows:

salt dosage - 10
Backwash time - 10
Brine rinse time - 71
Hardness level - 020
Regeneration interval - 0087

 

[Reach4]

I’m diluting the solution in the chlorine tank with RO water because my residual ppm of chlorine is much much higher than 1-2ppm immediately after the contact tank. My chlorine test kit turns immediately yellow then almost orange because it’s so concentrated with chlorine. I don’t want to expose the carbon filter to more chlorine than is necessary.

Have you tried turning down the "percent stroke" or "stroke frequency" knobs? Diluting the chlorine in the solution tank is fine, but you don't want to have to fill up the solution tank too often.

Maybe diluting is best at this point, since you are visiting the area frequently until things are dialed in.

 

[Reach4]

Is anyone familiar with Culligan water softener settings? I’ll provide a picture of it. The resin tank is about 44” tall and 9” in diameter. I have no idea what the grain capacity is on this or if it’s sufficient. The settings are as follows:

salt dosage - 10
Backwash time - 10
Brine rinse time - 71
Hardness level - 020
Regeneration interval - 0087

Not familiar, but salt dosage 10 probably means 10 pounds. 8 would be more salt-efficient.
You probably have 1 cuft of resin, and about 20000 grains of softening.

Regeneration interval - 0087 could suggest that this is a timed controller rather than demand-driven. But in that case, why would Hardness level be a setting? It could be a day override setting that only comes into play if you have not used much water.

Brine rinse time - 71 could be what is commonly called brine draw time. 71 is probably minutes. If you drop the salt dosage some, you may be able to reduce this.

 

[FredWurlitzer]

Have you tried turning down the "percent stroke" or "stroke frequency" knobs? Diluting the chlorine in the solution tank is fine, but you don't want to have to fill up the solution tank too often.

Maybe diluting is best at this point, since you are visiting the area frequently until things are dialed in.

Not familiar, but salt dosage 10 probably means 10 pounds. 8 would be more salt-efficient.
You probably have 1 cuft of resin, and about 20000 grains of softening.

Regeneration interval - 0087 could suggest that this is a timed controller rather than demand-driven. But in that case, why would Hardness level be a setting? It could be a day override setting that only comes into play if you have not used much water.

Brine rinse time - 71 could be what is commonly called brine draw time. 71 is probably minutes. If you drop the salt dosage some, you may be able to reduce this.

Yes, I have adjusted the stroke knob and have noticed that I’m not burning through as much chlorine solution as before, but still maintaining an appropriate amount of residual chlorine. So getting that dialed in is still ongoing. I still can’t wrap my head around how 0.35 fluid ounces of 12.5% is enough to make 11-12ppm of solution.

I honestly don’t know if my softener regeneration is demand or time determined. I do know that my water will feel soft for a while then gradually turn hard until it regenerates, which sounds like it could be time determined.

 

[Reach4]

Yes, I have adjusted the stroke knob and have noticed that I’m not burning through as much chlorine solution as before, but still maintaining an appropriate amount of residual chlorine. So getting that dialed in is still ongoing. I still can’t wrap my head around how 0.35 fluid ounces of 12.5% is enough to make 11-12ppm of solution.

There are sample calculations. Suppose you buy a gallon of 8% bleach. That is 1 gallon at 80000 ppm. You mix that with 3999 gallons of water, and that is 4000 gallons at 20 ppm.

You react the iron etc with the 20 ppm water, and you have a residual of whatever.

Now use that same methodology in a spreadsheet with your numbers. 128 fluid ounces in a gallon and your 125000 ppm bleach.

 

[Bannerman]

Here is a calculation from another thread. https://terrylove.com/forums/index....ection-system-but-no-chlorine-detected.69734/

Chemical injection pump GPG/Well pump output rate (GPD)xsolution strength= ppm injected.

I am not sure of your chemical injection pump but lets guess 10 gpd

10/43,200x6000ppm=1.4 ppm chlorine injection. If you have 2 ppm of iron, you will not have any residual chlorine.

FYI, a gallon of household bleach is approx. 55,000 ppm

 

[FredWurlitzer]

Here is a calculation from another thread. https://terrylove.com/forums/index....ection-system-but-no-chlorine-detected.69734/

Chemical injection pump GPG/Well pump output rate (GPD)xsolution strength= ppm injected.

I am not sure of your chemical injection pump but lets guess 10 gpd

10/43,200x6000ppm=1.4 ppm chlorine injection. If you have 2 ppm of iron, you will not have any residual chlorine.

FYI, a gallon of household bleach is approx. 55,000 ppm

Thank you for that link and reference!! I did come up with some numbers after some calculating.

With that said, I had to first determine the rate at which my well pressure pump is flowing at. After using the method found in the link that Bannerman provided, I got 2 GPM of output. That seems awfully low?? Most treatment systems I see advertised require a minimum of 5 GPM. I have a Well -X-trol WX-202.

Anyways.. my chlorine pump is rated at 60 GPD. It is currently set at 40% stroke volume, so 24 GPD.

Let’s use the 2 quarts of 12.5% chlorine, so 60,000 ppm added to 30 gallons of water is 2,000 ppm.

So.. 24 GPD/2,880 GPD x 2000 ppm = 16.6 ppm chlorine injected. Seems like a lot. But then again, we don’t know how much hydrogen sulfide is in the water. That wasn’t included in the NTL water test.

What is everyone’s thoughts on air injection systems? My neighbor uses this method with good results.

 

[ditttohead]

This is a very complex question, but to greatly simplify I will simply give you a short "suggestions/guidelines".

Less than 5PPM and reasonable pH (>7) and it can work fairly well. If there is some trace bacterial issues then you really need to consider the ozone option. The ozone option is always recommended but it does add some cost.

Remove the valve from the tank and tear the valve apart after three months of use to gauge the affects on the system. Most of the time their will be some slight buildup, this is easily cleaned so an annual teardown/cleaning should only take you 15-30 minutes.

Higher levels should be taken more seriously as the effectiveness may not be so good and excessive buildup can occur.
https://83498217-c360-4279-a995-14f...d/a3c37f_f2c36483e56e49118b54f71950059336.pdf here is a link to an ozone AIO system design that we currently manufacture with exceptional results.